The invention relates to computer-based on-line commerce, where a computer user buys goods or services.
There has been an explosive growth in the use of the globally-linked network of computers known as the Internet, and in particular of the World Wide Web (the xe2x80x9cWebxe2x80x9d). The increased use of the Web has changed the way people work and play and has begun to make an impact on the way business is conducted throughout the world.
Such changes in business include the purchasing and selling of goods. The ability to move goods from warehouse to market to consumer is important in minimizing inventory costs associated with depreciation of goods, stocking costs, and maintenance costs. Accordingly, as goods remain in inventory, profits recognized upon sale of the goods decrease due to the inventory costs mentioned above. In order to reduce the loss in profits, sellers tend to reduce the price of goods that have exceeded an optimal time in inventory. Thus, the inventors have determined that there is a need on the part of sellers both to move goods out of inventory in an expedited manner and to identify those goods having a lower price.
The invention provides methods, systems and computer programs for on line commerce of goods. In particular the methods, systems and programs of the invention process, retrieve and identify information regarding goods having an excess inventory age.
Accordingly, in a first embodiment the invention provides a method of performing computerbased on-line commerce of goods, comprising receiving information about a plurality goods from at least one vendor, wherein the information includes inventory age; compiling the information from the vendor to form a database; processing a request from a consumer regarding goods by comparing the request to the database; identifying goods fitting the request having an excess inventory age that exceeds an age of best profit; and using the information associated with the goods that best fit the request.
In another embodiment, the invention provides a computer program stored on a computer readable storage medium, comprising instruction to cause a computer to: receive a request for goods from a client computer, wherein the request comprises information related to a desired good; compare the request to a database, the database comprising information regarding goods including an inventory age report associated with the goods and the location of the goods; make decisions as to which goods best fit the request from the client computer; identify goods fitting the request having an excess inventory age that exceeds an age of best profit for the good; and use the information associated with the goods that best fit the request from the client computer. In yet another embodiment the invention provides a system for performing function defined above.